Donald J. Trump State Park
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Donald J. Trump State Park is a state park in the towns of Yorktown and Putnam Valley in Westchester and Putnam counties, New York. The park consists of property that was donated to New York State in 2006 by developer and future President of the United States
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
. Maintenance of the park was halted in 2010 due to budget constraints, and the park remains largely undeveloped. Most of the buildings have been demolished; only a few foundations and the existing tennis court remain. There have been several calls to rename the park.


History

Trump purchased the property in 1998 with plans to build a $10 million private golf course. Totalling $2.5 million, it was purchased in two sections: Indian Hill for $1.75 million and French Hill for $750,000. The land contained significant wetlands and development faced strict environmental restrictions and permitting requirements. He donated it in 2006 after he was unable to gain town approvals to develop the property. At that time Trump claimed the parcel was worth $100 million. He used the donation as a
tax write-off A write-off is a reduction of the recognized value of something. In accounting, this is a recognition of the reduced or zero value of an asset. In income tax statements, this is a reduction of taxable income, as a recognition of certain expenses ...
. The donation was praised by governor
George Pataki George Elmer Pataki (; born June 24, 1945) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 53rd governor of New York from 1995 to 2006. An attorney by profession, Pataki was elected mayor of his hometown of Peekskill, New York, and went on ...
. Trump said, "I hope that these 436 acres of property will turn into one of the most beautiful parks anywhere in the world.” New York State announced the park's closure due to budget cuts in February 2010. It was questioned whether the closure was necessary since the operating budget for the park was only $2,500 a year and it was maintained by workers from the nearby
Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park Franklin D. Roosevelt State Park is a state park in Westchester County, New York. Formerly known as Mohansic Park and Mohansic State Park, it is situated in Yorktown, approximately from New York City. The park was created in 1922 on the form ...
. Although Trump threatened to take the parkland back after the closure was announced, the land remains in the control of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. An attempt to convert a portion of the park's French Hill section for use as a dog park in 2010 revealed that at least one of the park's abandoned buildings contained asbestos. By 2012, the planned dog park remained on hold due to difficulties raising funds for fences and asbestos abatement. The park is not listed at the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation park locator, although signs along the nearby
Taconic State Parkway The Taconic State Parkway (often called the Taconic or the TSP and known administratively as New York State Route 987G or NY 987G) is a parkway between Kensico Dam and Chatham, the longest in the U.S. state of New York. It follows ...
direct visitors to Donald J. Trump State Park. During a 2015 visit by ''
The Rachel Maddow Show ''The Rachel Maddow Show'' (also abbreviated ''TRMS'') is an American liberal news and opinion television program that airs on MSNBC, running in the 9:00 pm ET timeslot Monday evenings. It is hosted by Rachel Maddow, who gained a public p ...
'', there were no signs of any recent upkeep; instead, the publicly accessible land was found to contain crumbling graffiti-covered buildings, empty map kiosks, and weed-choked parking lots. In 2017, an article on website ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' framed the park as an "abandoned wasteland", with "muddy fields, overgrown tennis courts, and dilapidated buildings" and a swimming pool in disrepair. Park access improvements including an asphalt driveway, gravel parking lot, entrance gates, wood fencing, and native tree and shrub plantings were noticed in 2020.


Geography

The park is divided into two sections, the Indian Hill parcel in northern Jefferson Valley (part of the Town of Yorktown in Westchester County) and Putnam Valley (Putnam County), and the French Hill parcel in southern Yorktown Heights, fully within the town of Yorktown. The parkland features a mix of continuous forest, open meadows, and several large wetlands. The Indian Hill section was formerly farmland but the farm houses and other buildings were all demolished by 2004. The headwaters of two streams, French Hill Brook and Dogwood Creek, originate in the French Hill section of the park.


Proposals to rename

In late 2015, State Senator
Daniel Squadron Daniel L. Squadron (born November 9, 1979) is an American politician and former member of the New York State Senate for the 26th district. A Democrat, Squadron was elected a New York State Senator in 2008, and was a candidate in the 2013 ra ...
introduced an "Anything but Trump Act" to change the park's name. Several suggestions for a name change were offered by elected officials. Assemblyman Charles D. Lavine suggested that the park be named for
Peter Salem Peter Salem (October 1, 1750 – August 16, 1816)BlackPast.org
"Salem, Peter"
was an < ...
, an African American who served in the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...
and is thought by some historians to have been Muslim, while the district's
U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
Sean Patrick Maloney Sean Patrick Maloney (born July 30, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the U.S. representative from from 2013 to 2023. The district includes Newburgh, Beacon, and Poughkeepsie. A member of the Democratic Party, Malone ...
suggested that the park be named after folk singer
Pete Seeger Peter Seeger (May 3, 1919 – January 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, Seeger also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of the Weavers, notably ...
. In response, Trump suggested that New York State return the park's land to his ownership. Efforts to rename the park after Pete Seeger continued in early 2016 with a petition by activist group "People for the Pete Seeger State Park" on
Change.org Change.org is a worldwide nonprofit petition website, based in California, US, operated by the San Francisco-based company of the same name, which has over 400 million users and offers the public the ability to promote the petitions they care abo ...
. In September 2017, New York's 25th Assembly District Representative
Nily Rozic Nily Rozic is a legislator from Queens, New York and a member of the New York State Assembly. Rozic represents New York's 25th District, which spans the northeast portions of Queens, including the communities of Flushing, Queensboro Hill, Hillcr ...
, a
Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...
, suggested renaming the park in honor of Heather Heyer, who died in a vehicle-ramming attack while protesting the
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in Charlottesville, Virginia. No renaming of the park has been undertaken and the proposal was largely ignored. Rozic, along with New York State Senator
Brad Hoylman Brad Madison Hoylman (born October 27, 1965) is an American Democratic politician. First elected in 2012, Hoylman represents the 27th District in the New York State Senate, covering much of Lower and Midtown Manhattan in New York City. He is ...
, reintroduced legislation to rename the park in 2018 but it did not make it out of committee. They again introduced legislation in 2019 to rename the park. After the 2021 United States Capitol attack, there were renewed attempts to rename the park, and an online petition to rename it after Sojourner Truth (a native of nearby
Ulster County Ulster County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is situated along the Hudson River. As of the 2020 census, the population was 181,851. The county seat is Kingston. The county is named after the Irish province of Ulster. History ...
) gained over 160,000 signatures. New York Assemblywoman
Sandy Galef Sandra R. Galef (born May 7, 1940) is an American politician serving as a state legislator who was a member of the New York State Assembly for 30 years. Career Galef represents the 95th Assembly District, spanning Westchester and Putnam coun ...
argued that the state should move forward with changing the park's name, arguing that "Mr. Trump did not sign the appropriate documents with the state, rendering any claim of breach of contract moot." Galef called for the park to be renamed in honor of former New York Republican governor
George Pataki George Elmer Pataki (; born June 24, 1945) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 53rd governor of New York from 1995 to 2006. An attorney by profession, Pataki was elected mayor of his hometown of Peekskill, New York, and went on ...
, who grew up in the area. Galef wrote, "Monuments, landmarks, and parks can hold a symbolic meaning and in this case a park named for Donald J. Trump can only represent the division he has sought to create in our country over the past four years. This division has no place in our state. Motorists have complained about the Trump signs on the Taconic for years, and we must take a stand." The effort to rename the park failed again in 2021 after not going up for a vote before state lawmakers during the legislative session.


See also

* List of New York state parks


References

{{authority control Yorktown, New York State parks of New York (state) Parks in Westchester County, New York Parks in Putnam County, New York Donald Trump controversies 2006 establishments in New York (state) Protected areas established in 2006 Naming controversies